In order to operate on a wireless network (e.g., a GSM cellular network), a wireless device (e.g., a sensor configured to use a wireless network) generally must be registered on the wireless network. To activate the wireless device on the wireless network, a wireless provider generally undertakes a practice referred to herein as “activation,” in which the wireless device is identified to the wireless network using an identifier (such as an international mobile subscriber identifier (IMSI) or similar identifying number, which, in many cases, is encoded on a subscriber identity module (SIM) of the wireless device. In a general sense, this process involves creating a record for the device. In some cases, the record comprises the identifying number, as well as an addressing number (e.g., a phone number for a wireless phone), such as an international ISDN number (MSISDN) or similar number. This record identifies the device to the network and provides information about the capabilities of the device.
Some wireless devices may only intermittently need to access a wireless network. For example, a sensor or meter that may need to periodically transmit data to a system may only need access to the wireless network once per day, week, or month. A assigning a permanent MSISDN may be inefficient if a limited number of MSISDNs may available for assignment. Other inefficiencies may also result from attempting to provide access to such wireless devices.